Ferret Eye Gunk

Question
QUESTION: Hi
Just today, I noticed my elder (age unknown, was adopted) ferret, Bear, had some heavy eye gunk in his right eye, and not in his other eye. He's never had any gunk before so me and my mom are worried if it might be a sign that he's getting sick again. I tried looking up ferret eye problems, but all I found was that eye gunk might be a symptom for Canine Distemper!! My mom insists that we should see if it lasts till the weekend, or if it starts to become puffy or irritated/red, before we try to contact our vet...Please, do you have an idea what it is? I'd appreciate any thoughts!!!

ANSWER: Hello Jessica!  

The good news is that your boy's gunky eye is likely not distemper.  Unless he has had recent contact with a dog carrying the disease and is not vaccinated, the possibility is almost zero.  If contracted, however, canine distemper IS 99.9999 percent fatal.  Ferrets do not get the feline version of the disease.  The good news is due to extremely low exposure, most ferrets will never contract distemper at all.  This is why I believe the gooey eye is not caused by it.

The not-so bad news is that a gunky eye is indicative of infection.  He could have a scratched cornea which could potentially be serious if an ulcer has formed.  You would need to being him to the vet so that the eye could be stained and looked at under UV light.  The stain adheres to the scratch, causing it to become visible.  Ulcers are very painful and require medication.  This is why I recommend a trip to the vet to determine if an ulcer is the cause.   

The second (and most likely) reason is conjunctivitis due to an upper respirator infection (URI).  Ferrets, just like humans, dogs and cats can all get URIs.  Some vary in intensity and can include gooey eyes (not necessarily both), discharge from the nose, lethargy, coughing/sneezing and a temperature.  Just because all of these symptoms are not present does not mean you should rule out the possibility of a URI.  His condition can worsen, and more symptoms could develop over the next few days.  I would recommend separating him form your other pets.  Other ferrets will be extremely suseptable, and if a URI is the cause, do not be surprised if the others catch it!! Ferrets, however, cannot transfer it back to you.  BUT!  If you have had a cold recently, you could have passed it to him.  Also, separating him would allow you to better monitor his food/water intake and waste elimination.  This is EXTREMELY important since a ferret needs to eat every 4-6 hours and a lack of appetite needs medical attention.     

I would recommend a quick checkup with your vet.  In case of a URI, antibiotics are a good idea that would help bear recover more quickly.  Or, if it is an eye ulcer, medication can be given and  minimize the possibility of loosing the eye.  Who knows, it might be something else entirely!  It is ALWAYS best to get a professional opinion form your veterinarian, ESPECIALLY in older pets.

I hope this information has proved useful!  Please let me know how this turns out for Bear.  I will be thinking about him!

Do not hesitate to ask any other questions or if you wish me to give further detail on anything.

Thank you for being such a wonderful and concerned ferret mom!  Bear appreciates it.

-Cindy P.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: HEY!!!
Thanks so much for your concern!! Actually, yesterday he didn't have it in his eye anymore, so we're somewhat relieved, perhaps it was him just being sleepy, or allergies or something?? But thanks for clearing it up for me, so we really don't need to worry too mucha bout Bear catching Canine Distemper?? We're gonna keep on observing his eye(s) to see if it'll come back but for now, RELIEF!!!!!! lol Thanks again for getting back to me, and I'm sure Bear does! He eats a ton and follows me about like a puppy~!!!!

ANSWER: That's great that it cleared up!  Since it resolved so quickly I would not be concerned.  As you said, it could be just some sleepy-crusties or perhaps an irritation that quickly went away.  Just keep a close eye on him for the next week or so to make sure it doesn't return.

That's so adorable that he follows you around!  My big guys does that too... right now he's flopped at my feet =3

I'm glad I could be of help!  It's great when things resolve themselves and you can breathe a sigh of relief!

-Cindy P.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Oh yeah, I forgot to ask before, sorry if I'm crowding you with so many questions, there was never anyone to get reliable information from before!!

Bear is a sweetheart with me, follows me around and doesn't run away, comes when called, sleeps with me until he wakes up and walks on my face, but he's almost..like a killer when we attempt to rejoin him with our youngest (age 1) ferret, Loki, and he always goes for her neck immediatly in a non-playful gesture, complete with hisses!! we don't know what to do, or if there's anything we can do!! Since we adopted him, we don't know too much about his past, but we do know that he was never played with and never had much other ferret contact. (always was kept locked up a cage with his previous family cuz of the kids) When we first got him, he was terribly skinny (his fragile bones showing) malnutrition (improper ferret approved food), his bones showing, and was losing all his hair. Loki always tried to play with him before when she was a few months old, but all he did was hide from her. Not even a month later, he fell ill and refused to eat or drink. After we took him to the vet, we started feeding him duck soup and he eventually got better. But now we think that he thinks Loki was trying to hurt him on purpose when he was sick, and, well, depises her and trys to attack her whenever we even dare to put them together. Loki's now terrified of him. She'll stick her nose into his cage (seprate cages now) and sniff around, i know she misses him, but when he comes around to sniff her she shrinks away, terrified and hides behind me. It's so sad!!

Me and my mom both are being selfish at this point, thinking that if we try to bring Bear together with Loki again, the results might be fatal!! Are there any techniques to help ease his aggresiveness?

Answer
I'd bet  my meager monetary earnings that Bear is a bit jealous of his new playmate!  Especially if he was the only ferret in the house for along time, he feels that it is his turf and you are his people.  The thought of another "thing" bouncing around stealing all of his attention is just horrific! But, he has to realize she is there to stay.

I have to tell you the story of my girl, Jahbu from many many years ago.  She despised any other creature with the passion of a thousand fiery suns.  She did not at ALL appreciate the friend I introduced to her after being a solo ferret for two years!  She would hiss, attack and bite the newcomer with a vengeance.  I would have to separate them except for monitored playtimes, if you could call them that.  Whenever Jahbu bit or attacked the newcomer, I would pin her down to the ground and "hiss" like an angry momma ferret.  This way, I spoke her language to express my displeasure in the way her mother would have done.  I would not let her up until she gave in completely.  It took a long time, but they began to get accustomed to each other.  The trick of pinning her down really worked well!  In fact, I tried that with my bitey girl, and hey!  It did the trick again!  I must be doing something right for once =)      

The ending to my story is that in due time, they became inseparable. Many many years later, Jahbu died of a broken heart after Ginny passed.  regardless of the sad ending, it proves that an aggressive ferret (or in her case, a jealous one) can befriend another!!

Try this trick and I have my fingers crossed that it might prove useful to you.  I best thing you can do is show your displeasure at bad behavior and reward the positive.  When he acts well, give him a treat.  If he attacks, hisses or bites, pin him down and hold him there until he gets the point.  This is the only way you will see progress, and I am guessing that with time and work they will be good buddies at some point soon!